A senior leader at the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party said there are “clear indications” the US and Israel have played a role in the crises in Sinai and Gaza.
“In the past, we used to inquire about the roles of [former chief of intelligence] Omar Suleiman and [former interior minister] Habib al-Adly, but now, with crises in Sinai and Gaza, I am looking for the role of [Israeli home front minister] Avi Dichter and [US Ambassador to Egypt] Anne Patterson,” Mohamed al-Beltagy, a former MP and a member of the Constituent Assembly, wrote on his Facebook page Tuesday.
The Sinai Peninsula has been especially unstable since the January 2011 revolution deposed former president Hosni Mubarak and later brought the Brotherhood to power through elections. The area has seen repeated clashes between security forces and unknown gunmen. One assault in August killed 16 Egyptian officers.
“There are apparent signs of a new wave of planned chaos,” Beltagy wrote. “Clashes, catastrophes, recurrent problems, surprising hurdles to the new constitution, unprecedented media controversies ... mounting political disagreements, are all the setting for an atmosphere of chaos.”
Beltagy blamed the new Egyptian regime’s slow decision-making, allowing the former regime figures to occupy vital posts, and failing to expose “the plot being formed.”
However, Beltagy said he is “confident the revolution will proceed despite all challenges and threats.”
